The Odyssey
by: Homer the poet
Homer
• Homer was a man’s name,
and not the Greek equivalent
of ‘anonymous’ and that is
the one certain fact about
him.
• There are legends of Homer
as a blind, wandering
poet/minstrel.
• No reliable info is available
about Homer and he is
considered mostly legend.
The Iliad and The Odyssey
were probably part of an oral
tradition composed by many
over a long period of time.
Who was Homer?
• Who he was, where he lived,
and when cannot be answered
with any certainty.
• In ancient times seven different
cities claimed to have been the
birthplace of Homer.
• he was likely a native and
resident of some area of Asia
Minor (western Turkey)
because the dialect in which
the poems were composed is
that of the Ionian Greeks.
Modern Day
Allusion
Who was Homer?
• Ancient Greek tradition
as well as a study of the
language and style of the
poems suggests he lived
around the 8th century
B.C.
• The composition of the
Homeric epics, The Iliad
and The Odyssey, was
probably sometime
around 750 BC
History & Literature
• Trojan war in Iliad/Odyssey about 1200 B.C.E
– 10-year Greek attack and siege of the city of Troy in
northwestern Asia Minor
• In between 300 years of “dark ages”- Hellenic
“Greece” sacked by tribes with no written
language
• Illiad/ Odyssey important W.European work
– 1st complete character arcs-growth/ full plot
Introduction
• The Odyssey of Homer is the second
great work of western literature , The
Iliad, also attributed to Homer, being
the first.
• The Odyssey is a Greek epic poem,
more than twelve thousand lines in
length, divided into 24 books
(chapters).
Geography/ politics
• location of the The Iliad and The Odyssey
is the Aegean Sea, The Ionian Sea and
parts of Turkey.
For discussion/ thought
• People debate whether Homer was real
person or just a made up figure. Assuming
he wasn’t “real” why might people have
invented an author for The Odyssey and
The Iliad?
• Why would they have added details to his
biography, such as blindness?
Why read Homer?
• These two epic poems are the most
important works of non-dramatic
literature surviving from ancient
Greece.
• They are part of and intertwined with the
Western literary canon so that knowledge of
them = cultural literacy: knowing about these
can help you to understand Shakespeare and
Dante and Joyce and Rowling.
The nature of Greek oral epic
• The Odyssey is an epic in the style of oral
poetry, composed to be read aloud.
• The origins of the tradition are lost, but
probably go back to Mycenaean times
(c1400-1200 B.C.)
What is an epic poem?
• An epic poem is a narrative poem on the
grand scale and in majestic style
concerning the exploits and adventures
of a superhuman hero engaged in a
quest or some serious endeavour.
• The hero is distinguished above all men by
his strength and courage, and is
restrained only by a sense of honour.
Elements of epic poetry
• The subject matter of epic includes myth,
legend, history, and folk tale
• It is set in a heroic age of the past and embodies
its country’s early history and expresses its
values
• Battles and perilous journeys play a large part,
as do gods, the supernatural and magic; scenes
are often set in the Underworld or in heaven
Characteristics of the Epic
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
Long story
Deeds of a hero
Determines fate of a whole people
Begins in medias res [middle of action]
Involvement of the gods
Magic or supernatural events
Characteristics of oral tradition [like
repetition]
– Beautiful Language [often verse]
Characteristics of Epic Poems
• The main character or protagonist is heroically
larger than life
• The deeds of the hero are presented revealing
his failings as well as his virtues
• The action, often in battle, reveals the morethan-human strength of the heroes as they
engage in acts of heroism and courage
• The setting covers several nations, the whole
world, or even the universe
Characteristics of Epic Poems
• The episodes, even though they may be
fictional, provide an explanation for some of the
circumstances or events in the history of a
nation or people
• The gods and lesser divinities play an active role
in the outcome of actions
• All of the various adventures form an organic
whole, where each event relates in some way to
the central theme
• Invocation to the muse or other deity
Characteristics of Epic Poems
• Long, formal speeches by important characters
• Frequent use of epithets:
• repetitious adjectives that are connected to various
people, places and other ordinary nouns.
• tell the listener of the important and permanent
qualities of characters or elements, for example:
-
resourceful Odysseus
wise Penelope
thoughtful Telemachus
bright-eyed Athena
wine dark sea
rosy-fingered dawn
Epic Hero
• The central hero of an epic
• larger-than-life powers. Achilles fulfills this
role in The Iliad; Odysseus in The Odyssey.
• Imperfect or flawed: Achilles is stubbornly
proud over a long period of time; Odysseus
has lapses in judgment.
• abundance of courage, a fighting spirit that
endears them both to the reader (listener) and
the gods.
• Who are other epic heroes (from Star Wars,
Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings)?
Elements of the Epic Hero
Cycle
• The main character is a hero, who is often
possessed of supernatural abilities or qualities.
• The hero is charged with a quest.
• The hero is tested, often to prove the worthiness
of himself and his quest.
• The presence of numerous mythical beings,
magical and helpful animals, and human helpers
and companions
Some major motifs
also found in HP novels
• Fate/prophecy
• Retribution
• Confrontations with death
(the Underworld) and
conversations with the dead
• Series of tests, including
battles with monsters, are
part of a lengthy journey
ending with home, family,
and stability
• Hero’s P.O.V.
Contemporary expressions
originating from the text
•
•
•
•
•
•
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Herculean
Mentor
Spartan
The face that launched a thousand ships
A temptress, a siren
The threads of destiny
museum
View of the gods
• Arbitrary--punish or reward as they feel they’ve
been wronged or honored
• Not all powerful– they debate on Mt. Olympus &
don’t always know everything that happens
• No one god in charge--even Zeus must
accommodate other gods when they get angry
• Do care for humankind--Odysseus has suffered
enough
• They are shapeshifters
View of Man
• Man must worship and obey the gods
• A son must earn his own reputation—
Telémachos must become his own hero
• Men want women for their beauty,
sexuality, possessions
• Men are basically physical--eating,
drinking, lusting, fighting, competing
• Man is at least partly responsible for own
fate
View of Women
• Possessions--responsibility of their
fathers, then husbands, then sons. Every
woman categorized as “maid,” “wife,”
“widow,” or “whore.”
• Powerless
• Must scheme to survive
• Penelope smarter than average--has
outwitted suitors for nearly 10 years
Gender Complexities
• Athena appears to Telémakhos as a man,
partly to hide her godhood, partly because
a man could move freely within Akhaian
society
• As a “father,” she makes a man of him-urges him to seek his father’s fate and to
fight his mother’s suitors
• Until then, Telémachos has been
“emasculated”
A short plot summary:
The Iliad is about the
Trojan War and The
Odyssey is about how a
hero of the war,
Odysseus, takes ten
years to get back home
after the war has ended
and about the
adventures he has along
the way.
The Man Odysseus
• “no mortal half so wise” (85)
– His wisdom hasn’t protected him from grief
and harm
– How wise is he, really?
•
LOOK FOR EVIDENCE FOR OR AGAINST O’S
WISDOM THROUGHOUT EPIC
• A brilliant schemer--note all ways Homer
has of saying this
The Beginning
(1 mintue and 14 seconds so listen to all of it)
• The Odyssey begins in medias res:
– the plot begins in the middle of the overall
story
– prior events are described through
flashbacks or storytelling.
• Odysseus (Latin: “Ulysses”) has just fought in
the Trojan War and is weary of war. All he
wants to do is to go back to Ithaca and his
beloved Penelope.
…However, the gods have other plans for this
trickster king.
THE END
Thank you for being here for the Odyssey.
Good-bye and good night!
(or day, depends on the time.)